Selepas kewafatan Nabi ﷺ, kaum Muslimin memilih Abu Bakr (ra) sebagai Khalifah. Antara perkara pertama yang beliau hadapi ialah kekeliruan berkenaan Fatimah Umm Hasan (ra), puteri Nabi ﷺ, yang ingin mewarisi sebidang tanah yang dimiliki oleh Nabi ﷺ. Abu Bakr (ra) memetik hadith berikut, yang menyelesaikan perkara tersebut.

After the death of the Prophet (saw), the Muslims selected Abu Bakr (ra) as the Khaleefah. One of the first issues he faced was confusion on the part of Fatimah Umm Hasan (ra), daughter of the Prophet (saw), inheriting a piece of land, which the Prophet (saw) owned. Abu Bakr (ra) quoted the following Hadith, which resolved the matter.

"Kami (para nabi) tidak meninggalkan harta untuk diwarisi. Apa sahaja yang kami tinggalkan adalah sedekah." (Bukhari & Muslim).

“We (Prophet‟s) do not leave things for inheritance. Whatever we leave is charity.” (Bukhari & Muslim).

Dia kemudian mencadangkan kepada Abu Bakr (ra), agar dia (Fatimah) diberi kuasa menguruskan harta itu dan membahagikannya sebagaimana yang dilakukan oleh Nabi ﷺ. Abu Bakr (ra) menolak sambil berkata, "Aku tidak akan meninggalkan sesuatu pun yang dahulu dilakukan oleh Rasulullah ﷺ." (Bukhari)

She then suggested to Abu Bakr (ra), letting her supervise the property and to distribute it the way the Prophet (saw) used to do. Abu Bakr (ra) refused saying, “I am not going to quit doing anything the Messenger (saw) used to do.” (Bukhari)

Dalam riwayat lain, Abu Bakr (ra) berkata, “Aku yang bertanggungjawab selepas Rasulullah ﷺ.” Dengan itu, Abu Bakr (ra) menjelaskan kepada Fatimah Umm Hasan (ra) bahawa jika dia (ra) memberikan kuasa ini kepadanya, maka apa gunanya adanya seorang Khalifah. Lagipun, bukanlah tugasnya untuk bertindak bagi pihak Khalifah.

In another narration, Abu Bakr (ra) said, “I am in charge after the Messenger (saw).” Thus Abu Bakr (ra) pointed out to Fatimah Umm Hasan (ra) that if he (ra) gave her this authority then what is the point of having a Khaleefah. Moreover, it was not up to her to act on behalf of the Khaleefah.

Pada ketika itu Abu Bakr (ra) mengumpulkan para Sahabah (ra) dan bertanya kepada mereka, "Di manakah kamu? Mengapa kamu meninggalkan aku?" (Abu Bakr (ra) merujuk kepada para Sahabah (ra) yang berangkat ke wilayah-wilayah yang baru dibebaskan.) "Jika kamu mahu aku menjadi Khalifah, kamu tidak boleh sekadar melantik aku lalu pergi." Maka Abu Bakr (ra) menahan kumpulan para Sahabah (ra) ini tetap bersamanya (ra).

At that time Abu Bakr (ra) gathered the Sahabah (ra) and asked them, where are you? Why are you leaving me? (Abu Bakr (ra) was referring to the Sahabah (ra) leaving for the newly liberated lands). If you want me to be the Khaleefah you cannot just appoint me and depart. Thus, Abu Bakr (ra) maintained this group of Sahabah (ra) with him (ra).

Pada zaman ini, dengan kewafatan Nabi ﷺ, para Sahabah (ra) mula berijtihad bagi masalah-masalah yang timbul yang tidak dinyatakan secara jelas dalam al-Qur'an dan Sunnah. Para Sahabah (ra) mengumpulkan al-Qur'an, dan ramai antara mereka telah pun menghafal keseluruhan al-Qur'an. Ayat-ayat al-Qur'an juga telah ditulis di atas batu, kulit kayu, atau kepingan kulit, dan bertaburan di kalangan para Sahabah (ra) secara umum.

During this era, with the death of the Prophet (saw), the Sahabah (ra) began performing Ijtihad for problems that arose which were not explicitly expressed in the Qur‟an and Sunnah. The Sahabah (ra) compiled the Qur‟an, and many of them had already committed the whole Qur‟an to memory. The Ayah of the Qur‟an was also written on stones, tree barks, or pieces of leather, and were scattered amongst the Sahabah (ra) in general.

Selain itu, kebanyakan Hadith tidak didokumentasikan; sebaliknya, ia dihafal di dalam ingatan. Tiada seorang pun yang menghafal keseluruhan Sunnah sebagaimana mereka menghafal keseluruhan Al-Qur'an. Namun begitu, Al-Qur'an dan Sunnah bersama-sama menjadi rujukan untuk penyelesaian masalah yang dihadapi oleh para Sahabah (ra) secara keseluruhan. Setelah beberapa lama, mereka mendapati bahawa tidak setiap individu mampu memahami Islam, lalu mereka memulakan program mendidik mereka yang tidak mampu itu.

Additionally, most of the Hadith were not documented; rather they had been committed to memory. No one single person had memorised the entire Sunnah as they had memorised the entire Qur‟an. Nonetheless, the Qur‟an the Sunnah together served as the reference point for the solutions to the problems that the Sahabah (ra) faced as a whole. After a while they found that not every single person was capable of understanding Islam, and so they began a program of educating those Muslims who were incapable.

Pada masa kewafatan Nabi (saw), para Sahabah (ra) berjumlah ribuan orang, namun hanya kira-kira tujuh hingga sepuluh orang daripada mereka yang lebih kerap mengeluarkan fatwa berbanding yang lain, dan mereka dianggap sebagai Fuqaha' praktikal, iaitu orang yang mampu memberikan hukum Islam bagi masalah-masalah praktikal harian. Termasuk dalam kumpulan ini ialah Umar, Ali, Ibn Umar, Ibn Abbas, Ibn Mas'ood, Zayd bin Thabit, dan 'Aisyah binti Abu Bakr (ra). Dalam usaha mereka menentukan hukum Shar'i bagi sesuatu masalah, para Sahabah (ra) berpegang kepada al-Qur'an dan Sunnah; namun mereka tetap sampai kepada pendapat yang berbeza-beza.

At the time of the death of the Prophet (saw), the Sahabah (ra) numbered in the thousands, however only about seven to ten of them used to give Fatwa more than the others, and were considered practical Fuqahaa, or people who were able to give the Islamic rule in practical, day to day problems. Included in this group were Umar, Ali, Ibn Umar, Ibn Abbas, Ibn Mas‟ood, Zayd bin Thabit, and Aisha bint Abu Bakr (ra). In their endeavour to determine the Hukm Shar‟i rules for problems, the Sahabah (ra) adhered to the Qur‟an and Sunnah; however, they still arrived at varying and different opinions.

Sebagai contoh, dalam isu talak, Abu Bakr (ra) dan Umar bin Al-Khattab (ra) mempunyai pandangan yang berbeza. Umar (ra) berpendapat bahawa jika seorang lelaki berkata kepada isterinya "Aku ceraikan engkau" sebanyak tiga kali dalam satu majlis, maka lelaki itu telah menceraikannya tiga kali dan tidak boleh menikahi semula wanita itu sehingga wanita itu berkahwin dengan orang lain dan diceraikan oleh suami tersebut. Manakala Abu Bakr (ra) berpendapat bahawa perbuatan itu hanya mengakibatkan satu talak sahaja.

For example, in the issue of divorce, Abu Bakr (ra) and Umar bin Al-Khattab (ra) had different opinions. Umar (ra) was of the opinion that if a man says to his wife “I have divorced you” three times in one sitting, then the man would have divorced her three times and could not remarry the woman until she married and was divorced by someone else. While Abu Bakr (ra) was of the opinion that this would result in only one divorce.

Dalam satu contoh lain, Abu Bakr (ra) biasa membahagikan harta rampasan perang secara sama rata di kalangan para Sahabah (ra). Apabila Umar (ra) menjadi Khalifah, beliau tidak memberikan kepada mereka yang baru memeluk Islam dan yang pernah memerangi Nabi ﷺ dalam peperangan awal, seperti Khalid bin Al-Walid (ra), sebanyak yang beliau berikan kepada mereka yang pernah menyertai Nabi ﷺ dalam peperangan-peperangan awal itu.

In another example, Abu Bakr (ra) used to distribute the spoils of war equally amongst the Sahabah (ra). When Umar (ra) became the Khaleefah, he did not give those who became Muslim recently and who had fought against the Prophet (saw) in the early wars, like Khalid bin Al-Walid (ra), as much as he gave to those who had accompanied the Prophet (saw) in those earlier wars.

Perbezaan di kalangan para Sahabah (ra) bukan sahaja terhad kepada perincian Hukum Syar‘i, malah mereka juga berbeza pendapat dalam beberapa cabang ‘Aqidah.

The differences amongst the Sahabah (ra) were not only limited to the details of the Hukm Shar‟i, they also had differences in certain branches of the „Aqeedah.

Namun, perbezaan pendapat ini mungkin wujud dalam cabang-cabang „Aqidah, terutamanya disebabkan oleh struktur linguistik bahasa Arab. Sedangkan, pada teras „Aqidah hanya terdapat satu pemahaman yang benar. Sebagai contoh, dalam satu isu yang berkaitan dengan „Aqidah, terdapat perbezaan pendapat mengenai Isra', Allah (SWT) berfirman; "Maha Suci Tuhan yang telah memperjalankan hamba-Nya pada waktu malam dari Masjid Al-Haram ke Masjid Al-Aqsa..." (TMQ al-Isra: 1)

However, these differences of opinions may exist in the branches of the „Aqeedah, mainly due to linguistic structure of the Arabic language. Whereas, in the core of the „Aqeedah there is only one correct understanding. For example, in an issue related to the „Aqeedah there is a difference of opinion regarding Isra‟, Allah (swt) says; “Glory be to He who took his „Abd on the Night Journey (Isra) from Masjid Al- Haram to Masjid Al-Aqsaa...” (TMQ al-Isra: 1)

Kebanyakan para Sahabah (ra) berpendapat bahawa jasad fizikal Nabi ﷺ telah melakukan perjalanan malam, iaitu al-Isra. Aisyah binti Abu Bakar (ra) pula berpendapat bahawa jasad fizikal Nabi ﷺ tidak melakukan perjalanan tersebut, dan hanya roh baginda ﷺ sahaja yang melakukannya. Hujah Aisyah binti Abu Bakar (ra) ialah bahawa baginda ﷺ tidak dirindui, dan tiada seorang pun yang mengingati jasad baginda ﷺ meninggalkan tempatnya.

Most of the Sahabah (ra) were of the opinion that the physical body of the Prophet (saw) made the night journey or the Isra. Aisha bint Abu Bakr (ra) was of the opinion that the physical body of the Prophet (saw) did not make the journey and that only his (saw) soul made it. Aisha bint Abu Bakr‟s (ra) justification was that he (saw) was not missed and no one remembers his (saw) body leaving.

Contoh lain ialah apabila Aisyah binti Abu Bakar (ra) diberitahu oleh seorang Sahabi (ra) bahawa si mati akan diseksa kerana ratapan dan tangisan yang kuat yang dilakukan oleh keluarganya. Aisyah binti Abu Bakar (ra) menolak dakwaan ini kerana beliau memahami bahawa ia bercanggah dengan ayat yang menyatakan:

Another example is where Aisha bint Abu Bakr (ra) was told by a Sahabi (ra) that the deceased person would be punished because of the wailing and loud crying, performed by his family. Aisha bint Abu Bakr (ra) rejected this claim because she understood that it contradicted the Ayah that says:

"Tiada seorang pun akan memikul dosa orang lain..." (TMQ Al-Isra: 15)

“No-one will bear the burden of another...” (TMQ Al-Isra: 15)

Imam Baghawi dalam kitabnya "Lampu-Lampu Sunnah" menyatakan bahawa Abu Bakr (ra) biasa merujuk kepada Kitab Allah (swt) untuk menyelesaikan masalah-masalahnya. Jika beliau tidak menemui penyelesaian di dalamnya, beliau akan bertanya kepada sebahagian daripada Fuqaha' di kalangan para Sahabat (ra) untuk mendapatkan ijtihad mereka dalam perkara tertentu itu. Imam Baghawi seterusnya berkata bahawa Umar (ra) biasa berunding dengan para Sahabat (ra) walaupun beliau sendiri seorang Faqih yang terkenal.

Imam Baghawi in his book “The Lights of the Sunnah” remarked that Abu Bakr (ra) used to look to the Book of Allah (swt) to solve his problems. If he couldn‟t find a solution there, he would ask some of the Fuqahaa among the Sahabah (ra) for their Ijtihad in the particular issue. Imam Baghawi goes on to say that Umar (ra) used to consult the Sahabah (ra) even though he was himself a well-known Faqih.

Walaupun para Sahabah (ra) berselisih pendapat, perselisihan mereka masih berada dalam panduan memahami teks dan ini dianggap perkara yang biasa. Imam Muhammad Abu Zahrah, ketika membincangkan zaman para Sahabah (ra), berkata bahawa adalah penting untuk menghapuskan dua salah faham.

Even though the Sahabah (ra) disagreed, their disagreement was well within the guideline of understanding the text and this was considered normal. Imam Muhammad Abu Zahrah, while discussing the era of the Sahabah (ra), said that it is important to remove two misconceptions.

A. Yang pertama ialah bahawa sebahagian orang berkata bahawa para Sahabah (ra) biasa mengabaikan Hadith yang sahih dan membuat keputusan berdasarkan akal fikiran atau pemikiran rasional mereka sendiri. Imam Zahrah berkata bahawa perlu difahami bahawa tiada seorang pun daripada para Sahabah (ra) yang meninggalkan nas semata-mata kerana pendapat rasional mereka; sebaliknya, pendapat mereka berasaskan dan dipengaruhi sepenuhnya oleh nas-nas. Beliau menggunakan contoh daripada Khalifah Umar bin Al Khattab (ra), ketika beliau menangguhkan pemotongan tangan pencuri. Sesetengah orang menggunakan peristiwa ini sebagai contoh bahawa Umar (ra) berbuat demikian semata-mata kerana pemikirannya sendiri.

A. The first is that some people said that the Sahabah (ra) used to disregard the authentic Hadith and based their judgments on their mind or own rational thinking. Imam Zahrah said that it should be understood that none of the Sahabah (ra) left the text for their own rational opinion; rather their opinions were based and influenced entirely by the texts. He uses an example from the Khaleefah Umar bin Al Khattab (ra), when he delayed cutting off the hand of the thief. Some people use this instance as an example that Umar (ra) did this solely due to his own thinking.

Ini adalah dakwaan yang tidak tepat, kerana terdapat sebuah Hadis yang diriwayatkan daripada Ali (ra) di mana Nabi ﷺ bersabda: "Janganlah kamu melaksanakan hudud dalam kes-kes yang diragui". Terdapat juga sebuah Hadis lain yang diriwayatkan daripada Makhul (ra) di mana Nabi ﷺ bersabda:

This claim is incorrect, since there is a Hadith narrated by Ali (ra) where the Prophet (saw) said: “Don‟t implement the Hudood in the cases of doubt”. There is also another Hadith narrated from Makhul (ra) in which the Prophet (saw) stated:

"Tidak ada potongan tangan dalam masa kelaparan." Dan Madinah sebenarnya sedang mengalami kelaparan ketika Umar (ra) menangguhkan pelaksanaan hadd.

“There is no cutting in a famine”. And Madinah was in fact experiencing a famine at the instance when Umar (ra) postponed implementing the Hadd.

B. Ada yang cuba mengelaskan para Sahabah (ra) kepada dua kumpulan: Mereka yang berpegang teguh kepada tradisi (Ahlel-Hadith), dan mereka yang tidak berpegang kepada nas, yang dipanggil Ahlel-Ra‟ee. Mereka mendakwa bahawa kumpulan pertama berbuat demikian kerana mereka adalah Tradisionalis Klasik, manakala kumpulan kedua adalah golongan Pembaharu.

B. Some tried to classify the Sahabah (ra) into two groups: Those who adhered strictly to the traditions (Ahlel-Hadith), and those who did not adhere to texts, called Ahlel-Ra‟ee. They claim that the first group did this because they were Classical Traditionalists, while the second group was Revivalists.

Tuntutan ini tidak betul, kerana kedua-dua Ahlel-Hadith dan Ahlel-Ra‟ee berpegang kepada nas. Imam Zahrah menyebut contoh yang mereka gunakan, mengenai haiwan ternakan yang tersesat di dalam negara. Nabi ﷺ bersabda supaya membiarkannya, dan ia akan sampai kepada tuannya. Tetapi Umar (ra) bertindak berbeza dalam perkara ini. Beliau mengumpulkannya di satu tempat dan membenarkan pemiliknya mengenal pasti dan mengambilnya.

This claim is incorrect, since both Ahlel-Hadith and Ahlel-Ra‟ee adhered to the text. Imam Zahrah cited the example, which they use, regarding the stray animals in the State. The Prophet (saw) said to leave them and they will reach their owner. But Umar (ra) acted differently in this regard. He put them in one place and allowed the owner to identify them and take them.

Jelas bahawa tindakan Umar adalah selaras dengan Nabi ﷺ, kerana tujuannya ialah membenarkan haiwan-haiwan yang berkeliaran sampai kepada pemiliknya. Cara atau kaedah Nabi ﷺ dalam menyelesaikan masalah itu ialah dengan membenarkan haiwan-haiwan tersebut dibiarkan berkeliaran.

It should be clear that Umar‟s action was in line with the Prophet‟s (saw), in that the objective was to allow the wandering animals to reach their owner. The Prophet‟s (saw) style or means in solving the problem was to allow the animals to wander.

Namun, pada zaman Umar (ra), apabila Negara telah berkembang ke kawasan Sham dan Afrika Utara, taktik meletakkan haiwan di satu lokasi digunakan untuk menyelesaikan masalah yang sama, iaitu mengembalikan haiwan yang sesat kepada pemiliknya, dan tiada sebarang percanggahan. Maka, apa yang dilakukan oleh Umar (ra) adalah sebahagian daripada tanggungjawabnya, yang memerlukan pengamalan beberapa prosedur pentadbiran. Keputusan pentadbiran seperti ini boleh diubah.

However, during Umar‟s (ra) time, when the State had expanded to the areas of Sham and North Africa, the tactic of putting the animals in one location was used to solve the same problem of returning the stray animals to their owners, and there is no conflict. So what Umar (ra) did was part of his responsibility, which requires adopting some administrative procedures. These administrative decisions can be changed.

Hendaklah difahami bahawa terdapat perbezaan antara arahan pentadbiran dan arahan perundangan. Memerintahkan seseorang supaya melaksanakan solatnya apabila dia melakukan kesilapan ialah arahan perundangan, manakala mengikat unta yang tersesat ialah arahan pentadbiran.

It should be understood that there is a difference between an administrative order and a legislative order. Ordering a person to do his Salah if he made a mistake is a legal order, while tying up a wandering camel is an administrative order.

Teks kadang-kadang boleh difahami dengan cara yang berbeza disebabkan oleh struktur ayat, dan/atau struktur bahasa Arab. Sebagai contoh, Allah (SWT) berfirman:

The text sometimes could be understood in different ways due to the structure of the Ayah, and / or the structure of the Arabic language. For example, Allah (swt) says:

Wanita yang diceraikan hendaklah menunggu selama tiga kali suci (Quru') {Al-Baqarah: 228}

“The divorced woman should wait for three periods (Quru)” (TMQ Al-Baqarah: 228)

Perkataan Quru' dalam bahasa Arab boleh bermaksud waktu ketika wanita mula haid, atau tempoh selepas haid. Perbezaan antara tiga kitaran yang bermula dengan tempoh suci ialah kira-kira 7 hingga 15 hari.

The word Quru‟ in the Arabic language can mean the time when the woman begins her menstruation, or the post menstruation period. The difference between three cycles beginning with the purity period is about 7 to 15 days.

Kadangkala seorang Sahabi mengeluarkan fatwa tanpa pernah mendengar hadis yang berkaitan dengan isu tersebut, sedangkan Sahabi lain mengetahuinya. Walau bagaimanapun, kes-kes seperti ini biasanya diselesaikan kemudian.

Sometimes a Sahabi would issue a Fatwa without having heard of a Hadith related to that issue, and which another Sahabi knew. However, these cases were usually resolved later.

Bagaimana mereka memandang nas-nas dan metodologi tafsirannya. Contoh berkaitan pewarisan datuk. Abu Bakr (ra) berkata bahawa jika seseorang meninggal dunia dengan meninggalkan bapa, saudara-saudara, isteri dan anak-anak, kehadiran bapa, yang dianggap sebagai datuk kepada anak-anak si mati, akan menghalang saudara-saudara yang lain daripada mewarisi harta. Umar (ra) pula berkata bahawa beliau akan memberikan kepada saudara-saudara dan datuk jumlah yang sama, selepas berbincang mengenai isu ini dengan Zayd bin Thabit (ra), yang merupakan sahabat yang paling utama dalam bidang pewarisan.

How they viewed the texts and the methodology of interpretation. An example deals with the inheritance of the grandfather. Abu Bakr (ra) said that if one dies leaving a father, brothers, a wife and children, the presence of the father, who is considered the grandfather of the deceased person‟s children, would prevent other brothers from inheriting the wealth. Umar (ra) said that he would give the brothers and the grandfather the same amount after discussing this issue with Zayd bin Thabit (ra) who was the foremost Sahabi in the area of inheritance.